Hellertown's Water Street Park to close for year for renovations

Hellertown is closing Water Street Park for a year in April for major renovations. The Saucon Valley Farmers Market, pictured here, will relocate to a spot near the Hellertown Library.

Hellertown is closing Water Street Park for a year in April for major renovations. The Saucon Valley Farmers Market, pictured here, will relocate to a spot near the Hellertown Library. (HARRY FISHER, MORNING CALL FILE PHOTO)

Kevin DuffySpecial to The Morning Call

The farmer's market in Water Street Park in Hellertown will relocate during renovations.

Come springtime, folks looking for a place for recreational activities in Hellertown will have to scratch Water Street Park off their list.

The popular 8-acre venue will be fenced-off and closed April 1 for a full year for renovations, reopening in April 2016.

But not to worry, Borough Manager Cathy Hartranft said — whether it's baseball and soccer fields or places for hiking and open-space activities, Hellertown has options for you.

Although work on the $800,000 project is anticipated to be done by Aug. 1, the park will remain closed to allow for grass and soil stabilization.

"We need everything to settle," Hartranft said.

Design engineer Barry Isett & Associates and contractor Whiting-Turner will undertake a phased development of the park, beginning with construction of a basketball court, expanded parking, rain garden and landscaping.

The initial phases will also include utility work and two unisex restrooms that will comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act.

Once those are completed, entranceway enhancements for improved safety will be done, as well as concrete curbing and stormwater management.

The park pavilion, playground and volleyball court will be maintained and reopened when improvements are completed.

The popularity of Water Street Park has grown since the 2011 opening of Saucon Rail Trail, which runs parallel to the park, and the launch of the Saucon Valley Farmers Market at the park.

During construction, the farmers market will relocate to the lot by Hellertown Area Library on Constitution Avenue. The Saucon Rail Trail will remain open.

Folks looking for places to enjoy outdoor activities in the borough will have other places to visit while the work is being done, Hartranft said.

Morris J. Dimmick Park, at 18.5 acres, has the borough's community pool. It also has athletic fields, a band shell, pavilion and a children's playground.

There is also Gristmill Park North and South. The north site, on Walnut Street, parallel to the rail trail, is a 35-acre parcel that has baseball and soccer fields and a restored pony bridge. The 13-acre south site features recreational fishing ponds and the Gristmill Building, home to the Hellertown Historical Society.

Those who prefer passive recreation might consider Tuminello Park, off the southern end of Main Street. The nearly 6-acre park features rain gardens and walking trails.

Two neighborhood parks, Third Avenue Park and High Street Park, each less than an acre, will also remain open, Hartranft said.

Hellertown also offers the Thomas Iron Works, an undeveloped parcel adjacent to Water Street Park, as an open-space option.

Work at Water Street Park is being fully funded through grants.

Hartranft said the borough was approved for each grant it applied for, including the state Department of Conservation and Natural Resources; Department of Conservation and Economic Development Greenways and Trails; Northampton County Open Space; and Monroe County gaming proceeds, which municipalities in Northampton are eligible to receive.

"We showed the need for improvements and had community support behind us," she said.

Hartranft said that while the borough received some negative feedback from residents regarding the closing of the park, most of the reaction has been supportive.

The plan is to "more than double" the amount of parking spaces, said Bryan Smith, chief landscape architect for Barry Isett & Associates.

Plans call for replacing the mixture of stone and asphalt with a combination of asphalt and stabilized turf to create enough room for more than 90 vehicles, he said.

He said the entranceway to the parking area will be narrowed, with the approach on Water Street upgraded to state Department of Transportation standards.

The township, Smith said, "is having issues with people doing U-turns in the middle of the road," he said.

The changes will help to alleviate that problem, he said.

Boulders in place to keep motorists from driving off the pavement will be removed in favor of curbing, Smith said.